Friday, May 25, 2012

Obstacles

Well, maybe Ganesh knows something that I don't.

This morning, I got my latest order from Sparkle Spot Bead Shop down in Florida, which included three spools of their marvelous colored Fireline (squee!) and a sheet of Lacy's self-adhesive design paper.

The self-adhesive design paper is really quite something. You can draw on it or put it in a copier or put it in a printer and print your designs directly onto it, then remove the backing and adhere it to a piece of Lacy's Stiff Stuff. (Or, in my case, a piece of Nicole's BeadBacking, which I much prefer to the Stiff Stuff any day!)

My idea for the self-adhesive design paper was to take some of the amazing and awesome artwork of my friend Susan Tompkins and turn it into bead embroidered pendants.

I printed a test page just to make sure that I knew which way my printer was oriented, and discovered that my printer was not printing any of the vibrant reds in the pictures!

So I cleaned the print heads. I replaced the magenta cartridge. I cleaned the print heads again. I contacted Brother customer service and was told that I need to take my printer to a service center. Of course, the nearest service center is Williston, Vermont.

I don't think traveling to Vermont, paying $28 for a ferry ride and then shelling out x number of dollars to have a $50 printer repaired is a wise move at this time. I hate to say it, but I think this printer is bound for the thrift shop, and I'll shell out $60 for a new one at Staples next week.

I'm frustrated, to say the least, that I'll have to put off this particular project, but maybe that's a good thing. I've got three more projects sitting on my table right now: my challenge piece for the Oct/Nov issue of Beadwork magazine (which needs to find its merry way to the Loveland office before June 12); a piece I've been tossing around in my head made from Twins and two-holed freshwater pearls that I picked up in Tucson; and not least of all, my piece for the Battle of the BeadSmith!

I did a little experiment for my Battle piece, and I'm pleased to say that with a bit of tinkering, I should be able to pull this one off. My technique for this needs to be flawless, so I'm a little nervous about that. I've never been particularly good at this technique, but I'm determined. Even if it means having to wear Band-Aids on my fingers for the next few weeks because of all the cuts I'll give myself by tugging on the Fireline, I'm going to do it.

That said, I took a few minutes last night before dinner to finish assembling this piece:

There are all those Czech glass stones that I've bezeled! Connected with vintage Czech glass pearls and finished with a vintage Vermeil clasp from A Grain of Sand. I have absolutely no idea where I'm going to be able to wear this, but a friend on Facebook suggested to a potluck dinner and bonfire tomorrow night. Ha!

Tom and his friend Claude have taken Colden fishing for a little while, so I am enjoying some veg-out time on the computer and catching up with things.

Beading Patterns Available in My Etsy Shop

Beading Patterns Available in My Etsy Shop

About Me

I'm an almost-forty-something momma, devout yogi, fearless explorer of the world around me. Thrift shop maven, unflinching advocate of community supported agriculture and organic lifestyle, and mom to quite possibly the most adorable, loving little boy on this side of the planet.